Experimental Analysis of a Novel, Magnetic-Driven Tactile Feedback Device

Abstract

The study presented in this paper details the development and experimental testing of a novel, magnetic, tactile feedback device that is able to deliver a stimulus to a patch of skin on the lower arm of a user. The device utilizes magnets to deliver a sensation that is not dependent on controlling specific frequency bands to stimulate the mechanoreceptors, as is the case with vibro-tactile methods. The device was tested on human volunteers to evaluate its ability to induce a response from the user through the magnetic interface. The study aims to quantify the ability of the user to sense the stimulus by analysis of the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) and delay in response under different experimental conditions. Three different speeds and two different distances were explored for the magnetic interface. A two-way, repeated-measures ANOVA with post-hoc analysis was performed for the percentage of correct responses, delay in response time, and area under the curve (AUC) of the obtained ROCs. The results showed that the different conditions had a significant effect on the number of correct responses and the AUC, but not on the delay. The magnetic interface thus needs to be optimized across different parameters to deliver the best detectable stimulus to the user. Future work includes further development of the device and working towards a comparative trial with other tactile feedback approaches.

Reimagining Prosthetic Control: A Novel Body-Powered Prosthetic System for Simultaneous Control and Actuation

“…Nevertheless, like an electric device, this device currently offers visual and auditory (in the form of noise from the gearbox and turbine rotor) feedback during device operation. However, understanding these aspects better, or perhaps, incorporating another feedback mechanism in the device [121][122][123] if required should be considered as future work.…”

Lack of Support in Medical Device Regulation within Academia

“…Prosthetic research is a highly innovative field that ranges from fundamental research on potential assistive technologies, such as magnetic-or electrorheological fluid-based gripping methods [8,9], to applied studies on, e.g., neural-connected sensory prosthesis or new tactile feedback approaches [10,11]. It is very important to be aware of the regulations whenever these technologies are developed for clinical use.…”